Year of the Spark: January 16
by Sparky Army
Summary: Elizabeth is grouchy and it's all John's fault...well, mostly anyway. Set after Echoes. The 16th installment of Year of the Spark.


**We, the Sparky Army, decree 2008 to be the Year of the Spark. We pledge to post a new sparky story or chapter of a sparky story every day from Ja**

**We, the Sparky Army, decree 2008 to be the Year of the Spark. We pledge to post a new sparky story or chapter of a sparky story every day from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2008. Though the Powers that Be have removed Elizabeth Weir from the regular cast of Stargate Atlantis, we feel that she remains an integral part of the show, and that the relationship between her and John Sheppard is too obvious to be ignored. We hope that you, and anyone might happen to read these works, agree.  
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**And if that isn't official enough for you, we don't know what is. Seriously, guys, we're just trying to have some fun--and show TPTB that Sparky is the way to go. So sit back and enjoy the 366 stories coming your way! **

**Note from Author (Steph7085):** Ok, I had to rush this. I came home from work today, looked at the date, and realised I had to post. So, my overworked brain came out with this. Hope you like it. :bites nails:. This is an attempt at fluffy, humour-ish-ness. Not good for an angst junkie, lol. Oh and please forgive any mistakes, my sounding board has disappeared off of the internet and I don't have the energy to read through it all :headdesk:.

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**R&R**

_By Steph7085_

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Despite popular opinion, she was not a morning person. The kick she gave to her cover proved that fact nicely as she threw her legs over the bed and placed her bare feet on the ridiculously cold flooring,smothering a yawn with her hand as her other ran through her unruly bed hair. Of course, it would have helped if she hadn't gone to bed only three hours before her alarm clock went off. 

Groggily, she stood up, revealing her pink, stripy shorts and the rest of her tank top. She stretched lazily and stumbled into her bathroom. She waved her hand at the mirror, refusing to look at herself at this time of a morning and immediately reached for her toothbrush, placing a glob of the mint-y substance on the bristles and putting it into her mouth. She was half way through brushing her teeth when the door chime sounded.

She frowned in puzzlement and slowly removed the brush from her mouth, glaring at it as if it was the one who had rung the chime. The chime went again and with an aggravated sigh she rinsed her mouth out, pushed herself away from the sink and marched to the door - toothbrush in hand.

When the door opened the view that greeted her didn't help her mood at all. In fact all she wanted to do was slap that fly boy smirk right off his face. He seemed to realise that though and held his hands up in defence.

"Hey," he said nervously, glancing at the toothbrush/weapon she was wielding. "You're not really gonna stab me with that are you?" Amusement glinted in his green eyes as his lips twitched. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes.

"I'm still thinking about it," she muttered threateningly before wandering further into her room. John followed, stuffing his hands into his pockets and studying her room. His eyes took in the open files spread across her bed and the laptop that was still half open. It was obvious that she had been up most of the night and he frowned in disapproval and sighed dramatically.

Elizabeth, who had disappeared into the bathroom carrying some clothes she picked up from a chair, poked her head around the corner and glared at him. She noticed what he was looking at and rolled her eyes.

"You're meant to be resting," John told her as she disappeared again.

"I was resting," she retorted, her voice muffled by material. "I was in bed, just like Carson ordered."

John snorted. "I think he mentioned something about sleep as well. I wonder what the good ol' Doc will say about that," he threatened teasingly.

Elizabeth came out of the bathroom wearing casual jeans, a mint green t-shirt and some sneakers, still brushing her hair. She grabbed a hair tie from her drawer and quickly pulled it up into a pony tail. A few stubborn pieces fell free and she angrily brushed them from her face, glancing at John through the mirror as she did.

"Hmm…yet you're the one here at," she glanced at her clock, "five thirty, waking me up. I wonder what he'd say about that."

"Good point," he conceded, grinning disarmingly as he stood up.

"I still can't believe I let you talk me into this," she muttered, shaking her head.

"What can I say, it's my natural charm." She couldn't help the laugh that escaped. He pouted pathetically in return, before gesturing for her to lead the way. She took a step forward before stopping abruptly and spinning around. Her eyes searched the room.

"Looking for this?" John asked smugly, holding out her ear piece. She tried to snatch it but he held it out of reach.

"Nah ah ah," he scolded, concealing the device in his pocket and patting it securely. "No work, no reports, no control room." Elizabeth tried to speak but he cut her off. "You're now officially on holiday."

Moments later the two leaders of Atlantis were walking through the empty corridors, heading in the direction of the jumper bay. Elizabeth still had no idea where they were going, only that John was taking her away from the distractions of work. In other words, he had conspired with Carson and decided that she couldn't be trusted to go a couple of days without work.

She couldn't help but silently curse the events that put her in this predicament. If the whales song hadn't caused her to collapse, along with nearly everyone else on the base, she wouldn't have been checked out by Carson, he wouldn't have been able to lecture her about her eating and sleeping habits, or lack of as the case may be, John wouldn't have walked in on a…heated debate about stress, lack of sleep and the effect it was having on her, and he wouldn't have ganged up on her with the only person able to give her the orders.

She sighed…noisily. She was still mad at him…well, annoyed would be the correct term - weren't they supposed to stick together on this sort of thing? Besides, it was still way too early to function without coffee and until she got some she wasn't taking any prisoners - errant fly boys included.

"Lizabeth, if you keep up that pace your holiday will be over before we even set off," John complained as he turned and began walking backwards. A smirk bloomed on his face when she glared at him. "I have coffee waiting in the Jumper, from McKay's secret stash," he persuaded, smugly.

Elizabeth's eyes widened in shock. "How did you manage that?" She blurted out, automatically picking up her pace to catch up. John continued to walk backwards so that he could face her whilst he talked, clearly quite pleased with himself.

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you," he replied. Elizabeth decided she wasn't going to complain, she was getting coffee after all. Ever since she collapsed in the control room, John had been more protective then usual; going out of his way to make sure she was eating and taking breaks every now and then - he wasn't used to her being in the infirmary unless it was to visit him. They finally made it to the Jumper and quickly went inside. When her eyes landed on the picnic basket set to the side she raised an eyebrow.

"I never pictured you as a picnic type of guy," she teased as she sat in the co-pilots seat, drawing her legs up to her chest and resting her head on her knees as she looked at him. She was greeted with the sight of a flask and she gratefully took it, reverently taking off the lid and inhaling the revitalizing aroma.

"You really aren't a morning person, are you?" John questioned in amusement, watching as she greedily drank the flasks contents.

"Hmm," she mumbled returning his smile.

"Then again, it would help if you didn't go to bed, what did Chuck say, oh yeah at about two this morning," he glanced at her pointedly and she rolled her eyes, despite the sheepish look that crossed her features.

"Everyone's ganging up on me," she complained half heartedly. John stopped what he was doing and swivelled his chair round to face her. His face was completely serious.

"It's only because we care," he said softly, the gentleness of his words belying the intensity in his eyes. Elizabeth looked down and bit her lip, the emotion of the moment too much to take.

"I know," she whispered back, smiling up at him. Without thought she reached up and kissed his cheek, her hands lingering on his shoulders as she sat back down. John surprised her though and captured her hand, squeezing her fingers gently before letting go and clearing his throat.

"We'll we'd better get going," he announced, his gaze moving to the view screen. Elizabeth caught the mischief in his eyes a moment too late.

"I really like your shorts, by the way. Nice and…sho…" He began. Elizabeth laughed out loud and slapped his arm, her face turning red. This was going to be an interesting holiday.

The End

(I think...)


End file.
